Playwrights Horizons serves the New York City premiere of Dan LeFranc's The Big Meal, a play that spans 80 years in the life of a family in one setting — a restaurant — starting March 1. Tony Award winner Anita Gillette (Chapter Two, Mr. President) is among cast members playing multiple roles.

Playwrights Horizons serves the New York City premiere of Dan LeFranc's The Big Meal, a play that spans 80 years in the life of a family in one setting — a restaurant — starting March 1. Tony Award winner Anita Gillette (Chapter Two, Mr. President) is among cast members playing multiple roles. Read the Playbill.com story.

Opening night is March 21 at Playwrights Horizons' intimate Peter Jay Sharp Theater on West 42nd Street. The limited engagement plays through April 8. The Mainstage is currently busy with the New York City premiere of the workplace comedy Assistance.

Here's how PH bills the new play, which was previously seen in Chicago: "Somewhere in America, in a typical suburban restaurant on a typical night, Sam and Nicole meet. And sparks fly, setting in motion an expansive tale that traverses five generations of a modern family, from first kiss to final goodbye. A stunning, big-hearted play that spans nearly 80 years in a single sitting, The Big Meal tells the extraordinary story of an ordinary family." The Big Meal will feature scenic and costume design by David Zinn, lighting design by Mark Barton and sound design by Leah Gelpe. Production stage manager is Alaina Taylor.

LeFranc received the 2010 New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award for Sixty Miles to Silver Lake, premiered by Page 73 Productions and Soho Rep. His other plays include Origin Story, Bruise Easy, Night Surf, The Fishbone Fables, Backyard, Kill The Keepers and Catgut.

The Big Meal received its world premiere at American Theater Company in Chicago, where it earned five Jefferson Award nominations including Best Play and was named The Best Play of the Year by Time Out-Chicago. Awards include the Whitfield Cook Award, the John C. Russell Fellowship, a Djerassi Resident Artists Program Fellowship, a MacDowell Colony/Alpert Foundation Residency; and commissions from Yale Rep, Berkeley Rep, and American Theatre Company in Chicago.

The performance schedule for The Big Meal will be Tuesdays through Fridays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 2 & 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2 & 7PM, with an additional Monday evening performance on March 19 at 7:30 PM. Single tickets, $60, may be purchased online via www.TicketCentral.com, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (noon-8 PM daily), or in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues).